Acupuncture

Acupuncture is an ancient Chinese therapy that involves inserting needles into the skin at specific points of the body. This form of healing makes use of the body’s pressure points that run along our meridian lines.

The earliest known textbook on Acupuncture was called ‘Nei Ching Su Wen’, which means ‘Yellow Emperor’s Classic of Internal Medicine’, dated from approximately 400BC.

The word ‘acupuncture’ means ‘prick with a needle’, and was named so by the Dutch physician William Ten Rhyne, who had been living in Japan during the latter part of the 17th Century. It was he who introduced acupuncture to Europe.

Traditional Chinese medicine views the body as being comprised of two natural forces known as ‘yin’ and ‘yang’. These two forces are complementary to each other, but are also opposing. The ‘yin’ is considered the feminine force and represents the calm and passive, dark, cold, moisture and swelling. The ‘yang’ is considered masculine – stimulating, aggressive, heat and light, dryness and contraction.

One of the aims of Acupuncture is to establish whether there is an imbalance of yin and yang. Once an imbalance is found it is rectified by utilizing and inserting the needles at certain points of the body. The points of the body where Acupuncture needles are inserted are along the meridians. These meridians or energy channels are related to the internal organs of the body. The needles are used to increase or decrease the flow of energy and/or to unblock any impediments to the natural flow. This energy is known as ‘qi’.

Many factors can disrupt and change the natural flow of ‘qi’ such as environmental, emotional and physical issues. The flow may become too fast or slow or can be blocked or diverted. The Acupuncturist inserts the needle into the skin at the appropriate points to stimulate and re-regulate the body’s natural energy flow.